﻿24:2 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  the 
  annual 
  octavo 
  reports 
  which 
  were 
  published 
  from 
  1837 
  to 
  

   1841. 
  The 
  final 
  reports 
  were 
  published 
  in 
  quarto 
  form, 
  beginning 
  

   at 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  field 
  work 
  in 
  1841, 
  and 
  3,000 
  sets 
  have 
  been 
  

   distributed, 
  comprising 
  four 
  volumes 
  of 
  geology, 
  one 
  of 
  mineral- 
  

   ogy, 
  two 
  of 
  botany, 
  five 
  of 
  zoology, 
  five 
  of 
  agriculture 
  and 
  eight 
  

   of 
  palaeontology. 
  

  

  The 
  collections 
  in 
  the 
  several 
  departments 
  were 
  supposed 
  to 
  re- 
  

   quire 
  a 
  room 
  of 
  some 
  magnitude, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  thought 
  that 
  such 
  

   could 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  third 
  story 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  capitol, 
  by 
  taking 
  

   away 
  a 
  partition 
  and 
  throwing 
  into 
  one, 
  two 
  rooms 
  used 
  by 
  com- 
  

   mittees; 
  but 
  long 
  before 
  the 
  completion 
  of 
  the 
  survey 
  it 
  was 
  evi- 
  

   dent 
  that 
  the 
  collections 
  would 
  require 
  much 
  more 
  space 
  than 
  the 
  

   capitol 
  rooms 
  would 
  afford, 
  and 
  in 
  1840 
  Gov. 
  Seward, 
  in 
  response 
  

   to 
  a 
  memorial 
  urging 
  ' 
  the 
  importance 
  of 
  providing 
  suitable 
  rooms 
  

   or 
  a 
  separate 
  building 
  for 
  the 
  collections 
  made 
  during 
  the 
  sur- 
  

   vey,' 
  recommended 
  that 
  the 
  old 
  State 
  hall 
  on 
  the 
  corner 
  of 
  State 
  

   and 
  Lodge 
  streets 
  be 
  used 
  for 
  that 
  purpose. 
  

  

  This 
  old 
  building 
  was 
  replaced 
  in 
  1857 
  by 
  a 
  new 
  one, 
  Geological 
  

   and 
  Agricultural 
  hall, 
  and 
  the 
  collections 
  which 
  at 
  first 
  were 
  to 
  

   find 
  place 
  in 
  two 
  committee 
  rooms, 
  now 
  occupy 
  a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  

   the 
  main 
  floor 
  and 
  three 
  entire 
  floors 
  above, 
  besides 
  storage 
  ac- 
  

   commodations 
  in 
  the 
  basement. 
  

  

  These 
  collections 
  form 
  a 
  scientific 
  museum 
  of 
  great 
  interest 
  and 
  

   value, 
  and 
  its 
  publications 
  are 
  recognized 
  among 
  the 
  works 
  of 
  

   standard 
  authority 
  in 
  science. 
  The 
  geological 
  survey 
  of 
  New 
  

   York 
  has 
  been 
  comprehensive 
  and 
  extended, 
  yet 
  some 
  portions 
  of 
  

   the 
  work 
  are 
  still 
  incomplete; 
  the 
  northern 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  state 
  has 
  

   been 
  but 
  partially 
  studied, 
  and 
  its 
  geologic 
  structure 
  is 
  but 
  im- 
  

   perfectly 
  known. 
  

  

  This 
  museum, 
  with 
  it? 
  extensive 
  and 
  increasing 
  collections 
  and 
  

   publications, 
  plays 
  an 
  important 
  part 
  in 
  the 
  educational 
  system 
  

   of 
  the 
  state, 
  since 
  the 
  importance 
  of 
  this 
  kind 
  of 
  education 
  has 
  

   become 
  so 
  fully 
  and 
  generally 
  recognized. 
  

  

  Although 
  neither 
  coal 
  nor 
  mines 
  of 
  gold 
  or 
  silver 
  have 
  been 
  

   found 
  within 
  the 
  state, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  shown 
  that 
  New 
  York 
  pos- 
  

   sesses 
  the 
  most 
  complete 
  and 
  unbroken 
  series 
  of 
  the 
  Palaeozoic 
  

  

  